By their very nature, wet/dry vacuum cleaners require powerful high speed motors to drive the vacuum producing air pump. Generally, large amounts of cooling air are required to keep the temperature of the motor within suitable operating temperature limits, and for the most part, little attention has been placed on the movement of air through the motor cooling ducts, with a view to cooling the motor in the presence of water spillage at or near the motor housing. Motors driving the air pumps of this class of vacuum cleaner, that is wet/dry vacuum cleaners, may be located in a variety of locations with respect to the soil containment vessel. Some models place the motor below the containment vessel, such that the motor is particularly vulnerable to the ingress of water or other cleaning liquids into the ventilation system of the motor.